Dîner en Blanc Fêtes Its 25th Anniversary in Bryant Park

Last night at approximately 6:30 p.m., 4,000 people dressed in white descended upon Bryant Park’s lawn with plastic tables, elaborate dinnerware, and feathered hats in tow. They were there to dine beneath the stars for the final evening of Dîner en Blanc’s American tour. The event, which was started in France 25 years ago by François Pasquier, has spread across the globe—from Singapore to Stockholm—and has now found a home in 16 U.S. cities. The banquet in Bryant Park marked its third annual year in Manhattan.

“It was the founder’s dream to do New York,” co-host Sandy Safi told VF Daily. “Funny enough, one of his first and favorite parks was Bryant Park. We sat here three years ago having a drink at the Southwest Porch, where he said, ‘This would be great for the event.’ And here we are.”

Last year, Dîner en Blanc popped up at Lincoln Center with 3,400 people. The year before that, it was Battery Park with 1,100 people. This year, 4,000 guests dined on Bryant Park’s lawn in the brisk fall air. Safi, as always, was grateful for the temperate weather.

“Twenty-five years in Paris. Not a rainy day. Five in Montreal. Not a rainy day. Three in New York. Not a rainy day,” she said. “We had Stockholm, but Stockholm rains 364 days a year from my understanding. And it was really raining. The drains were flooded. People did not care. They were all prepped, umbrellas up, having a dinner. The invitation does say, ‘Rain or shine.’”

The dinner began with the traditional waving of the white napkins, and then guests dug into their pre-made meals, which ranged from sushi to Whole Foods takeout. All the while they eyed each other’s white wigs, costumes, centerpieces, and dinnerware.

Yaz Quiles, a guest who’d waited through two years of waitlists, said she was thrilled when she finally snatched an invitation.